The possibility of remote patient monitoring at home, consultations with specialists from different locations for rural doctors, and the use of artificial intelligence to identify overlooked medical patterns is no longer science fiction. For many residents of South Africa, access to healthcare still depends on their place of residence, the availability of necessary specialists, and medical supplies.
However, there is a solution: technology can play an increasingly significant role in solving these problems. Researchers at the North-West University (NWU) are turning this potential into practical solutions for resource-constrained healthcare systems.
As part of the Digital Health and HealthTech Innovation programme, an interdisciplinary team combines the Faculty of Engineering, the NWU School of Business, and the Faculty of Health Sciences to improve the quality, efficiency, and accessibility of medical care.
Professor Lenta Grobler, an associate professor of digital health innovation at NWU, believes that technology can expand specialist reach, bring care closer to patients, and transform medical data into useful information for making more informed decisions.
The programme has already provided several practical developments, including an AI-based system for analyzing retinal scans, a solution for remote monitoring of ventilators, and an AI-enhanced digital companion for well-being.
Professor Grobler emphasizes that instead of asking 'What can we do with AI, an app, or a new sensor?', the question should be: 'What problem are we trying to solve?'. She explains that the true goal of digital health is not to make medicine more technological, but to use technology wisely to enhance its accessibility, efficiency, effectiveness, and patient-centricity.
From AI-based screening to digital well-being
Professor Grobler, who is a computer engineer and electronics engineer, began working in healthcare research around 2016. She applied engineering principles such as automation, optimization, data collection, sensors, and connectivity to solve problems like patient monitoring, treatment adherence, and clinical decision-making. Later, her work led her to the NWU School of Business, and in 2025, she joined the Faculty of Health Sciences.
She notes that engineering taught her how to understand and create systems, while innovation and business helped her bring ideas to life, and medicine gives this work meaning.
This interdisciplinary approach is reflected in the programme's portfolio. One project, conducted in collaboration with colleagues from physiology, uses AI to process retinal scans for screening various diseases. Professor Grobler explains that retinal scans contain important physiological information, and artificial intelligence allows for the detection of patterns that can facilitate earlier and more scalable screening, especially where specialized knowledge is lacking.
Another project, EmpathIQ, is an AI-enhanced digital companion for well-being designed for adolescents, students, and young adults. It combines reflective journaling, health tracking, guided resilience exercises, and conversational AI to support users facing emotional, academic, social, and personal difficulties.
It is important to note that EmpathIQ is not intended to replace an AI therapist or diagnostic tool. According to Professor Grobler, it should not present itself as a therapist, diagnose conditions, or substitute professional psychological or medical care; instead, it should promote reflection, recognize the need for additional human support, and encourage seeking help.
There is also the game Ikusasa, which uses game-based learning to strengthen leadership and management skills in health sciences. Professor Grobler argues that healthcare depends not only on clinical knowledge; healthcare workers also need to lead teams, make decisions, manage resources, and navigate complex systems.
Another development, Monitor-T, is a smartphone-based digital health system that records anthropometric measurements, such as weight and height, to monitor infant growth and identify children at risk of severe acute malnutrition in resource-limited settings.
Professor Grobler points out that the digital component allows going beyond the analysis of a single indicator. With regular collection of reliable measurements, one can begin to track a child's growth trajectory. In her words, long-term data can reveal patterns indicating a child's slowing growth. Earlier detection gives healthcare workers a chance to intervene before the child reaches a more severe stage of malnutrition or risk of development.
The goal is not just to provide clinicians with more data for management, but to provide them with the best information at the right time to support sound decision-making.
Solving the problem behind the problem
The programme's work on remote ventilator monitoring is another example of technology developed in response to a specific healthcare problem. During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was significant concern about the availability of ventilators. As researchers interacted with the clinical environment, it became clear that another limitation was that ventilators require highly skilled medical professionals to monitor patients and interpret what is happening.
The team developed a universal non-invasive system for remotely monitoring the status of ventilators. It collects relevant information from both the patient and the device, displaying it on a digital control panel, allowing healthcare workers to monitor multiple patients more effectively.
In Professor Grobler's view, an important lesson from this project was that the technology was less related to the ventilator itself than to the shortage of specialized human expertise required to operate it. She concludes that technology cannot replace necessary specialists, but it can help expand their capabilities.
Not all digital health innovations are clinical devices. The Pharmaflow project at NWU focuses on the digital management of pharmaceutical supplies in public healthcare institutions. It helps institutions track drug availability and identify emerging shortages. Broader university research in digital health includes software for pharmacovigilance reporting and data analysis, as well as systems that improve the supply and inventory control of medicines in public medical facilities.
Designed with African realities in mind
Professor Grobler warns that a technically sophisticated solution may fail if it is designed for an environment that is very different from where it is supposed to function. Many technologies created in wealthier countries assume the presence of a stable high-speed connection, uninterrupted power supply, expensive equipment, specialized technical support, and healthcare systems with entirely different staffing levels and workflows.
These assumptions do not always match the conditions in African medical facilities. According to Professor Grobler, 'context is part of the technology.' When developing solutions for African conditions, researchers must consider whether the solution can work with intermittent connectivity, remain scalable, be locally maintainable, and align with the workflows of the people who will use it.
This may require creating simpler, more robust, and more efficient systems. Professor Grobler believes that in Africa, the greatest impact will come from technologies designed with local needs and constraints in mind. They must be accessible, reliable, trustworthy, scalable, and capable of functioning within the realities of African healthcare systems.
She also stresses that the success of the programme should be measured not only by what it develops, but by what these technologies achieve. Real metrics must include the practical implementation of technologies, the creation of sustainable enterprises, the enhancement of healthcare worker capacity, and most importantly, the improvement of people's access to quality healthcare due to what has been developed.